Behaviour of RC Beams with non-bonded flexural reinforcement: A numerical experiment

The present work is concerned with a numerical investigation of the behaviour of reinforced-concrete beams with non-bonded flexural tension reinforcement. The numerically-established behaviour of such beams with and without transverse reinforcement is compared with its counterpart of similar beams with bonded reinforcement. From the comparison, it is found that the development of bond anywhere within the shear span inevitably leads to inclined cracking which is the cause of 'shear' failure. On the other hand, the lack of bond within the shear span of the beams is found, not only to prevent cracking within the shear span, but, also, to lead to a flexural type of failure preceded by the formation of horizontal splitting of concrete in the compressive zone. It is also found that delaying the extension of horizontal splitting through the provision of transverse reinforcement in the beam mid span can lead to flexural failure after yielding of the tension reinforcement. Yielding of the tension reinforcement before the horizontal splitting of the compressive zone may also be achieved by reducing the amount of the latter reinforcement.